


Prudent

by mikkimouse



Series: Tumblr Fics [175]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: F/F, Minor Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski, Sharing a Bed, Thunderstorms
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-16
Updated: 2017-11-16
Packaged: 2019-02-03 03:35:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,428
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12740208
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mikkimouse/pseuds/mikkimouse
Summary: “So, are you going to be this squeamish about sharing a bed?”Cora choked. “Wait, what?”Lydia sighed and gestured to the bedroom. “There’s only one bed and, if it hasn’t been taken over by spiders, it would be prudent to share it. Body heat, you know.”





	Prudent

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the prompt "Seeking Shelter" from [this prompt list](https://mad-madam-m.tumblr.com/post/164991585155/lustanddai-sweet-affectionate-moments-meme) and originally posted to Tumblr [here.](https://mad-madam-m.tumblr.com/post/167458163990/the-second-prompt-from-this-ask-23-seeking)

Lydia stumbled through the driving rain, and she only knew she was going in the right direction because Cora still had hold of her hand. Normal rainstorms were bad enough, but she was reasonably sure this one had a supernatural elemental behind it, making it a thousand times worse. 

Her clothes had been soaked within seconds. Her hair was plastered to her head. She was pretty sure she'd lost one of her favorite boots in the mud a hundred yards back. 

Whenever they found this elemental, Lydia was going to jab her stiletto heel right into its _eye_. 

"Where are we going?" she shouted over the roar of the rain.

"We're almost there!" Cora shouted back, which didn't answer Lydia's question and thus wasn't helpful in the least.  


Before she could point that out, they stumbled right onto a cabin that Lydia had never seen before, and Cora elbowed the door open and led them inside. 

It was not the best shelter in the world. Rain pounded at the sides of it and leaked through the roof, leaving puddles on the floor. But it was definitely drier and moderately warmer than outside right now, so Lydia would take it. 

She shivered and rubbed her hands over her shoulders. "What is this place?" 

"They used to have a bunch of cabins out in the preserve for campers," Cora explained as she walked the perimeter of the cabin like she was searching for something. "The people who owned it went bankrupt when we were kids, so Laura, Derek, and I commandeered some of the cabins to play in when we were little. I was hoping at least one was still around." 

"Thank heaven they didn't all succumb to the elements," Lydia said dryly. 

A gust of wind blew harder and the cabin rattled worryingly. 

An inanimate object was living to prove her wrong. Lydia sighed. "How long can we stay here?" 

Cora opened one of the unused cabinets and pulled out some cracked bowls, and started putting them under the leaks. "Until we hear from Derek or until the cabin falls down around our ears."  


Lydia went in search of towels. 

The only other door in the cabin led to a small bedroom that was maybe half the size of Lydia's own, with an equally microscopic attached bathroom. However, the bathroom did have towels, even if there were only three and they were all the cheap, scratchy kind that clearly hadn't been washed in years. 

Lydia made sure no spiders had made a home in them before she took them into the living room and tossed them to Cora. "Here. So we can dry off ourselves and the floor." 

Cora eyed the towels like Lydia had thrown her a live grenade. "Are you sure nothing's living in these?" 

"I checked. And now I'll check to see if I can get a fire going." 

Cora muttered something Lydia couldn't catch, but she picked up one of the towels and started drying off. Lydia went looking for firewood. 

Of course, she couldn't find any, given that everything outside was soaked within an inch of its life, and nobody had left any inside.  


Well, they could find a way to make do without a fire. Getting dry would help tremendously. 

She stood up and stripped out of her shirt, and then kicked off her skirt. Her skin prickled with goosebumps the second the air of the cabin hit her skin, but once she toweled off and dried her hair a bit, that would change. 

She turned to grab one of the towels she'd thrown at Cora, and saw Cora was standing there gaping at her. 

Lydia snagged a towel of the couch and started drying off. Ugh, it was so _scratchy_. "What's wrong with you?" 

"Why are you _naked_?" Cora croaked. 

Lydia finished drying the rest of her body and wrapped her hair in the towel. "Because my clothes are soaked and I'm freezing? Relax, sweetheart, I've still got my bra on. You should probably strip, too, unless werewolf healing will keep you from getting sick from the cold." 

Cora's cheeks turned red. "I—" 

Lydia sighed and turned away. "There, you have some privacy. Really, I thought werewolves would be less prudish about this kind of thing." 

"That's only if you can full shift," Cora muttered. "I can't." 

"Hm." Lydia tapped the side of her mouth, mulling that information over. That was interesting. "But Derek can, and your mother could, right? And I remember Stiles saying Laura could. I wonder if that's an Alpha thing or something that's passed down genetically? Maybe you _can_ full shift." 

Cora grunted at her, which Lydia took to mean she didn't know and probably didn't appreciate the questions. 

Lydia filed that away as something to discuss with Stiles later. "So, are you going to be this squeamish about sharing a bed?" 

Cora choked. "Wait, _what_?" 

Lydia sighed and gestured to the bedroom. "There's only one bed and, if it hasn't been taken over by spiders, it would be prudent to share it. Body heat, you know."

"Body heat," Cora repeated faintly. 

Lydia rolled her eyes. "I'll get into it first."

"I'll take the couch," Cora said quickly. "It'll be fine." 

That was the most idiotic thing Lydia had ever heard. She threw up her hands. "Fine. Do what you want, then. See if I care if you freeze to death." 

She stomped into the bedroom and whipped back the covers on the bed, giving it a cursory check for any creepy-crawlies before she got in. The storm was still raging outside, she had no idea how long it would last, she had no idea where her _phone_ was, and she had no idea how long it would take her clothes to dry. And the bed was cold and just about as scratchy as the towel. 

Lydia curled up into a little ball under the covers, and then she could privately admit that it _hurt_ that Cora didn't want to share the bed. Refusing to do so was stupidly illogical under the circumstances, so that meant there was a substantial chance Cora was refusing because she didn't want to get close to Lydia. Which was _fine_ —Lydia wasn't foolish enough to think that just because she found someone attractive, it needed to be reciprocated, even if it usually was—but she had hoped Cora would be more upfront about it. 

Then again, she _was_ Derek's sister, and Lydia had spent the last year watching him and Stiles aggressively pine for each other without ever actually admitting they were pining for each other. It was painful to see. Maybe the Hales just didn't possess the ability to talk about their feelings as easily as they discussed virtually anything else. 

The bed dipped behind her, and Lydia froze. 

"I thought you'd be fine on the couch," she said when she found her voice again. 

"I don't want you freezing to death on my conscience," Cora muttered. 

"It's not _that_ cold," Lydia said, even though she’d used the same argument to get Cora _into_ the bed. 

"Uh-huh." Cora sounded skeptical. "Don't we need to be a little closer to share body heat?" 

Lydia's heart thudded at the thought, and she knew Cora had to have heard it. "Get as close as you'd like." 

She did not expect Cora to put an arm around her and press close, but that was exactly what happened. Lydia raised her eyebrows, and she was very glad Cora couldn't see her face, because— "Are you completely naked?" 

"I didn't expect to be taking my clothes off today," Cora grumbled. "And I hate bras." 

Lydia snorted. "Why doesn't that surprise me?"

Cora's breath was warm on the back of her neck. "You know, Red, if you wanted to cuddle with me, you could've just asked." 

"I _did_ ," Lydia pointed out.

Cora huffed. "You said it would be _prudent_ to share a bed." 

"Because _body heat_." Lydia sighed. "Really, sweetheart, do I have to spell everything out for you?" 

She could swear she felt Cora smiling against her neck. "It would help, yes." 

Lydia was pretty sure that Cora could smell how happy she was, but that didn't mean she had to show it. "I'll keep that in mind."

The rain lashed against the windows, and Lydia winced. "Do you think it'll stop soon?" 

Cora shrugged. "Who knows? But there are worst places to be holed up during a storm. And right now, I'm having trouble thinking of some place better." 

All things considered, Lydia couldn't agree more.

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on [Tumblr](https://mad-madam-m.tumblr.com/) and [Twitter](https://twitter.com/mad_madam_m)!


End file.
